Helpless
by NobodyLikeMe
Summary: Edward and Bella met in 1917. He was sixteen and she was a seven year old child with a shady past and a refusal to speak. After Edward is changed, is it possible that the seventeen year old shy Bella is his little girl of so many years ago?
1. God Bless the Child

Helpless

Summary: Bella and Edward met in 1917, he was a sixteen year old, she was seven with a shady past and a refusal to speak. What happens when they meet again in 2004, both vampires, but she is seventeen.

God Bless The Child

EPOV

To say I was upset was quite an understatement. Mother promised me I could play baseball with Christopher, Thomas, William and the rest, but now here I was walking to the market to buy the steaks for dinner because she couldn't work up the energy to. Okay, I'm sure there is a reason she couldn't go, but I'm angry so shoot me.

I was just passing the train station at this point. There were people milling about everywhere, and through the crowd I spotted a lone little figure. I edged my way into the crowd trying to find the small child. I don't know why, but something about the sight of the child seemed to draw me in. I looked everywhere but I couldn't seem to find her. I backed out of the group and continued on my way to the market, still thinking about the little girl.

On my way back from the market I heard what sounded like a small child crying as I passed the train station. I looked into the alley beside the train tracks and there I spotted the small child, just sitting curled up against the wall sobbing into her fabric-clad knees.

"Hello, my name is Edward Masen. Are you all right." The child stared at me as if I had just spoken gibberish.

I tried again. "Do you speak English?" The girl nodded. "What's your name?" Again I got the blank look.

It was starting to get dark out and I knew I should be home already, but the little girl looked so helpless I just couldn't bare to leave her. "Do you want to come home with me?" The little girl nodded. I held my hand out to help her up and she instantly flinched like I was going to hit her. "Okay, how about you just follow me home.

I stood up and walked towards the exit to the alleyway. I heard the small noises signifying the child had stood up and was following me. I walked home slowly to make sure the girl didn't get left behind and silently prayed that mother wouldn't mind the new addition at the dinner table

**So that's the first chapter I hope you enjoyed it. Please review.**

**The song is "God Bless The Child" from 'August Rush'**

**The song for the title is "Helpless" by 'k.d. Lang'**

**-Nobody **


	2. Hope

Hope

EPOV

"Mother?" I yelled as we reached the house. Through my peripheral vision I saw the child flinch as I raised my voice.

"Oh, Edward there you are. I was getting so worried." She suddenly seemed to notice the little girl standing behind me and several steps back. "Who's this?"

"I don't actually know her name, but she didn't seem to have anywhere else to go so I invited her here."

My mother had a look of shock on her face, before she rearranged her features and offered the little girl a smile. "Did you ask her for her name?"

"Yes, but she wouldn't tell me. In fact, she didn't speak at all." I turned around and scrutinized the little girl like my mother was doing.

"Why don't we just call her Sarah for now until she tells us her real name."

"Okay." I agreed, but in my mind the little girl just didn't look like a Sarah. With her big chocolate brown eyes and waist length dark brown hair, the name Sarah just didn't seem to fit her.

"Sarah?" My mother called the child's new name softly, and, knowing she must be calling to her, the child looked up slowly. Turning to me, my mother said, "I'll try to get Sarah inside, can you get Mary and ask her to start a bath upstairs?"

"Sure." Just at that moment, though, I heard Mary's voice behind us.

"I heard my name, Missus Masen, Master Edward."

"Oh, Mary, will you please run a bath for that little girl out there?" My mother asked her beseechingly. It wouldn't have made a difference anyway, Mary, the cook/housekeeper, always did what mother told her to.

"Of course Missus," then turning to the girl she called out, "come child."

I stood in shock as Sarah instantly walked right through the door, and completely ignoring mother and I, looked up at Mary, with a slight look of fear on her face.

BPOV

I followed the woman that Edward had called Mary up the stairs and into a big room with a toilet, a sink, and a large bathtub. It was a much nicer room then I had ever seen in my life.

"Turn around, child, and let me get that filthy dress off you." Mary told me. I turned instantly. Edward and his mother were too kind looking, that made them unpredictable. Mary's face had a permanently severe expression, so I did as she said immediately. I knew the damage that could be done if you disobeyed a face like that.

Mary pulled off my dirty dress quickly, leaving me only in my undergarments. I turned back around as she got it off and looked into her horror struck face.

"Missus Masen! You might want to get up here quick!" Mary shouted downstairs.

I heard footsteps running up the stairs before Edward, his mother, and another man who also had a severe face came running into the room.

"Oh Sarah. My goodness, what happened to you?" Edward's mother gasped.

I knew how I must look. I had runaway from my home to escape mother's beatings, but that doesn't mean all of the marks and bruises she has left on my skin just disappeared as I did. Most of the bruises all over my body were hand shaped and quite prominent against my pale skin. I must look like quite the fright to them.

"Get Sarah cleaned up, Mary. Wash her dress and we'll talk to her downstairs after she is finished." The other man said.

"Mister Masen, her dress won't be dry until tomorrow, and even then, I think it better we just throw the thing out and buy her all new clothes."

"I think, maybe one of Edward's baby dresses might fit her for now, and I can get her some new dresses tomorrow." Mrs. Masen seemed to be the voice of logic in this house. "For now, just get her cleaned up, won't you Mary?"

"Of course Missus."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

EPOV

After Mary had taken Sarah upstairs to clean her up my mother led me into the parlor and sat down in the armchair leaving me to sit on the couch.

"Now, Edward I want you to tell me exactly what happened and how you came to meet that child."

I was about to answer when I heard father calling that he was home from the front hallway. He walked into the room and looked at my mother and I. He seemed to sense the tense atmosphere in the room, as sat down on the arm of mother's chair wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"What's going on?" Father looked from me to my mother.

"Edward brought a little girl home. We're calling her Sarah."

"What?" My father was about to continue when we heard Mary's urgent voice shouting for mother to come and see something. I found it a little bit strange. Mary never shouted. We raced upstairs and instantly understood the urgency in Mary's tone.

Sarah stood there covered in hand-shaped bruises, and a healing cuts. I was in a state of shock. Poor Sarah, who could have done such a thing to a little girl.

My mother was the first to speak. "Oh Sarah. My goodness, what happened to you?" Her voice was just a quiet gasp.

Sarah didn't react to my mother's words at all, except for a flicker of knowing, which led me to believe she knew exactly what my mother had said and the answer to the question. It also ruled out the deaf theory I had been turning over in my head to explain her no talking rule.

"Get Sarah cleaned up, Mary. Wash her dress and we'll talk to her downstairs after she is finished." My father spoke up.

Mary explained the inability to get the dress dry until tomorrow, and my mother, having a sudden brainwave, suggested one of my baby dresses. I guess it could work. I wasn't sure how old Sarah was, her size suggested a four or five year old, but her face looked older, at least seven or eight. The baby gown I had when I was three would fit her easily.

My mother grabbed my arm and led me back downstairs so Mary could continue cleaning Sarah.

Father spoke as soon as we were seated in the parlor, "I think we need to discuss what is to become of the child."

"Well, of course we are going to keep her, right?" I wanted to tell my mother we would keep her right away, but as this was father's house he got the final say. I was quite nervous to hear his answer.

"There is no question on leaving her out in Chicago all alone. I just meant what are we to do to look after her?" Father stated that like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"We'll have to send her to school, just not until she is ready. For now, we have to feed her, clothe her, and find out about the past that has left her so…so scarred." My mother was close to tears at this point.

Father instantly pulled mother into his arms and started to soothe her softly, before speaking up so I could hear too, and saying, "I think it is quite obvious what has happened to her. She has either been beaten and left on the streets to die, or she was beaten and she ran away." He looked furious even as he said the words. "Though, who could treat an innocent child like that. I wouldn't treat a criminal like that."

"Who could have done it, though?" My mother sounded like her heart was breaking.

"As deplorable as it is, I have heard of parents who beat their children sometimes. Kenneth, the boy who was in my class last year would sometimes get beaten by his stepfather, before hi stepfather was arrested for armed robbery and Kenneth and his mother moved away." My parents gave me a startled look, before turning back towards each other.

I could tell they were discussing how to help the child, so I moved to my piano to give them some privacy.

BPOV

Mary had filled the bathtub with water and told me to get my undergarments off while she got a towel and the baby dress.

I slipped off the clothes and waited for her to get back, while I wondered if I could keep my story a secret for any length of time in this house.

"That's a pretty necklace." I heard Mary say as she came back into the room. I nodded in thanks and held the locket to me as Mary reached towards me to lift me into the tub. I know my reaction was irrational, but the only time my mother ever reached towards me was to hit me, so I flinched back and pressed myself against the side of the bathtub.

Mary sighed in frustration, and left the room, returning a moment later with a step stool so I could get myself into the tub.

I climbed in slowly and sat down. Mary handed me a cloth and told me to clean up. I rubbed the cloth everywhere, only wincing slightly when I scrubbed a bruise.

"Now, will you let me wash your hair?" Mary questioned in a soft, careful voice. I considered quickly before nodding my head slightly.

Mary's hands running through my hair felt like mommy's when she used to care about me. She used to read me stories and sing me to sleep and hold our family together. I loved my mommy so much, but I had always been a daddy's girl. Then daddy had gone away to war and mommy had started distancing herself from me. I still remember the day my life fell apart completely:

_Flashback:_

_ Mama and I were in the kitchen. She was cooking dinner and I was playing with the silver locket daddy had given me for a goodbye present. It was shaped like an oval and had a pretty design around the edges. _**(picture will be on profile when I figure out how to put it there, please tell me how in a review)**_When you opened the locket there was a picture of daddy and I that mommy had taken in our backyard a few months ago. On the other side of the locket shell there were the words "Shine on, with your smile just as bright as the sun. __Daddy loves you forever my Bella__." _

_ I had been staring at the words remembering the song daddy used to sing to me that went along with them, when the doorbell rang. Mommy answered the door, and I heard the men talking to her. When she came back into the kitchen her face was white and her eyes were red._

_ "Those were men from your father's regiment, Bella, I'm afraid daddy is dead."_

_With that she had turned around and headed up the stairs while I collapsed in tears. Mommy hadn't come downstairs until the next morning, and I could tell by the look on her face, that she had been drinking. She had started hitting me and shaking me and telling me what a useless child I was._

I remembered that day like it was yesterday. Mommy had turned to alcohol, and from then on, I cooked the meals and looked after the house. The beatings had only gotten worse.

"Here now, child. Turn around so I can get this dress on you." Mary pulled the dress over my head and did up the buttons at the back before turning me around and looking at me. "There, see, child, you don't look half bad now you are nice and clean."

I nodded without even looking up. Mary walked towards the door and motioned for me to follow her.

The stairs were a bit steep, and being me, I almost tripped on every one. When we finally were at the bottom, Mary led me into a large room where Edward and his parents were waiting for me. Mary turned around and left me facing the three adults in front of me.

"Sarah. Is that your real name?" Edward's father was the first to speak.

I shook my head.

"Is it alright if we call you Sarah since you won't tell us your real name?" Edward continued, looking at me intently.

I nodded.

"Sarah, why don't you speak?" Edward's mother asked me.

I stared at them. There was no other way to answer without using the voice that mother said was awful enough to kill anyone that heard it.

"Sarah, after much consideration, we have decided to let you live with us for now, because we couldn't bare to leave you out there alone." Edward's father said, gesturing to the window.

I stared at the three of them in shock. I could stay with them. Mama would never be able to find me here. And for the first time since daddy died, I felt a glimmer of hope.

**The song for this chapter is 'Hope' by 'Five For Fighting'**

**Thanks for reading, the next chapter will be up shortly.**


	3. Concrete Angel

Concrete Angel

BPOV

Once the Masen's had finished talking to me, Mary led me back up the stairs and into a large bedroom.

"This is the first guestroom. You will sleep in here while you are at this house." She told me. "This is the closet. You will hang up your dresses here. There are also towels and extra blankets in here. As you already know, the bathroom is through that door. Good night." Mary left the room and shut the door behind her. I got the distinct impression she didn't like my presence in this house.

The room in which Mary had left me was beautiful. Against the wall at the back there was a beautiful bed made of a golden wood, with diamond patterns cut into the wood. The linens on the bed were white with tiny diamond patterns to match the bed frame. There was a small table next to the bed done in the same colour wood. On the opposite wall there was a fireplace and the entrance to the bathroom. With the other two walls, one had a large window that looked onto the garden that was obscured by the night, and several landscape paintings; the other wall held the closet and the entrance to the hallway.

I climbed into the bed and blew out the small candle preparing to sleep. I didn't know at the time that my mind would be assaulted by a series of flashbacks that in my tired brain twisted leaving me worse off and more tired than I was before.

_Dream:_

_ In the dream I was waiting by the stove for the water to boil so I could make pasta. I had my fingers crossed behind my back just hoping that mama wouldn't get home soon. If she came back and found dinner unfinished, there would be hell to pay._

_ "Bella!" M mother's angry voice shouted from the front door. So much for hoping._

_ "In here, mama." I called back, trying to keep tremor of fear from my voice._

_ Mama walked into the kitchen slowly and assessed the sight in front of her. She noticed that there was no dinner on the table and instantly her eyes narrowed. I shrunk against the wall and tried, with no success, to become invisible._

_ " Why isn't dinner ready, you worthless little child?"_

_ "Sorry," my voice trembled audibly, "I fell asleep after school."_

_ That was enough for mama. She grabbed my brown locks and yanked me towards her. I tried to avoid her hands, but there was no escaping them and their brute force. My skin would be purple by the next day._

_ Now it was my seventh birthday. I hurried downstairs in the early morning to cook breakfast for mama and myself. I sincerely hoped mama wouldn't remember it was my birthday. I was still scarred from my sixth. Usually mama just hit me, but on my birthday, she used a sharp object on me._

_ "Happy Birthday, imbecile." mama walked up behind me grabbed my arms in a tight grip that cut off my circulation instantly._

_ It was about four days after my birthday when I finally decided that to save my own life I had to run away and never come back._

_ I managed to avoid mama all morning, and by noon, I was headed out the door. I ran to the train station, which was happily situated only a few blocks away, and slipped in with the crowd. I managed to get myself onto the train and I was headed...I actually didn't know where the train was headed, but anywhere was better than here._

Now here is where reality twisted and changed altogether. In reality I got away and ended up here. In my dream, I wasn't so fortunate.

_"Trying to escape, worthless one?" My mother's voice was ice cold and came from directly behind me._

_ I screamed as she hit me. I screamed as she dragged me off the train. I screamed throughout the entire beating to the inevitable blackout. And when I woke up, I was still screaming._

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

ESPOV (Edward Senior POV)

I threw my pen down and sighed. It was late and I wanted to be in bed, but instead I was in my office working hard on the law case I was cursing with every stroke of ink on the page.

I had meant to work on the case as soon as dinner was finished, but then there was the whole drama with the little girl. Just as I was thinking about what could have happened to the child I heard the soft sound of someone crying. Instantly, I stood up and raced towards the sound.

Passed Elizabeth and my room, passed Edward's room, and passed the second guestroom, I finally stopped outside the first guestroom where the child was staying. The child was still crying, but now it was muffled so I could barely hear it.

I stepped into the room and looked at the bed. Sarah had buried her head among the pillows so her cries couldn't wake anybody up, but she didn't seem to be able to stop screaming.

"What's wrong, little one?" I asked as I sat down on the bed beside her shaking form. Instantly her body stilled and her head shot up. I looked into her terrified and tear-filled eyes and felt intense pity for the little girl. Without thinking about the child's reaction, I pulled her into my lap and stroked her back. She tensed up for a minute, and then she finally relaxed against my chest.

When the little seemed to be asleep again I placed her back in the bed and turned towards the door. The child grabbed my hand, trying to keep me with her. I had to work on the case and finish it for tomorrow, but I also wanted to build up the child's trust, so I picked her up along with the blanket on the bed and carried them both to my study. I set the child down on the couch in my study and smoothed the blanket over top of her.

"Try to get some sleep okay, Little One."

The child nodded in response. I decided that even if I ever learned the girl's real name, I would still probably just call her Little One. It seemed to fit.

I sat back down at my desk and tried to focus on the case. I was just getting back into it when I felt a light tapping on my knee. I looked down and there was the child staring back up at me.

"What's wrong?"

The child held her arms up in response. I lifted her onto my lap, blanket and all. The small girl put her thumb in her mouth and relaxed against my chest closing her eyes.

I was a little bit shocked. I was the first person who the child not only willingly let touch her, but asked to hold her. Me. Even Edward, my own son, had been a bit nervous around me when he was young, I had always assumed that I was just not one of those people that appealed to the young.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

After a heroic effort I finally finished the case and put it into my bag in preparation for the next day. I looked at the clock. It was past 12:00 am. My gaze shifted to the little girl, fast asleep in my arms. She looked so peaceful.

I stood up, girl and all, and headed to the door. I walked down the hall and into the little girl's room. I placed her down onto the bed and rearranged the blanket so she would be more comfortable and then I headed back to my room to see if I could sleep through the rest of the night.

BPOV

Even in my sleepy brain, I registered the fact that Mr. Masen had put me back into bed by the change in my dreams. Before, they had been happy memories from when papa was there to tuck me into bed and help mama read me a bedtime story and sing the lullaby he had written for me on our old piano. Now, my dreams were very confusing. In between the pictures, there were lyrics from the song Angela's mommy wrote for me after mama changed to remind me that even though my life was now without dad, I could still be worse off. She didn't know that my fate was almost the same as the girl's in the story.

_Dream:_

"_She walks to school with the lunch she packed._

_Nobody knows what she's holding back._

_Wearing the same dress she wore yesterday._

_She hides the bruises with the linen and lace."_

_ I remembered going to school everyday trying not to show the handprints on my arms to the world. It's harder than it looks. Angela greeted me outside the school as usual, and we walked inside comparing last nights homework._

_ "What's that?" She asked me pointing at a bruise that was sticking out from under the sleeve of the dress._

_ "I fell and got stuck behind the couch. Mama pulled me out, I guess she pulled too hard." I don't know why I lied for her, but I had the feeling that if the truth got out there would be hell to pay at home. _

_ Angela accepted my answer readily._

"_The teacher wonders but she doesn't ask._

 _It's hard to see the pain behind the mask._

 _Bearing the burden of a secret storm._

 _Sometimes she wishes she was never born."_

_ Maybe Angela didn't accept my answer quite as easily as I thought she did. I saw her walk up to Ms. Adams and point at my bruised arm while she spoke to her. Ms. Adams must have told Ange not to worry, because Angela sat down looking a bit upset._

_ I was glad. If anyone had found out mama hit me, she would have made me wish I was never born. Actually, maybe that wouldn't have been so bad._

"_Through the wind and the rain she stands hard as a stone._

_In a world that she can't rise above._

_But her dreams give her wings and she flies to a place where she's loved._

_Concrete Angel."_

_ In the midst of my old memories a new picture formed. I was walking home slowly, when suddenly, Edward stepped in front of me._

_ "You know, it doesn't have to be like this." He told me._

_ "What other way is there?" I asked._

_ "You'll see." He told me, and then he disappeared._

"_Somebody cries in the middle of the night._

_The neighbors hear but they turn out the light._

_A fragile soul caught in the hands of fate._

_When morning comes it will be too late."_

_ The night came and I sat in my room to do my homework until bedtime. Edward appeared before me again, and sat down on the bed next to me._

_ "Are you ready for the change, Bella?"_

_ "What change? What's going on?" I was starting to get annoyed so I raised my voice a bit._

_ "Shhh. It's starting." It was at that point I heard my mother stomping up the stairs shouting about the noise._

_ "It will be over soon." Edward told me, then he disappeared again._

_ Mama stomped into the room and proceeded to hit me and shake me mercilessly. Before I knew what was happening, I was floating above my body. _

"_Through the wind and the rain she stands hard as a stone._

_In a world that she can't rise above._

_But her dreams give her wings and she flies to a place where she's loved._

_Concrete Angel._

_A statue stand in a shaded place._

_An angel girl with an upturned face._

_A name is written on a polished rock._

_A broken heart that the world forgot."_

_ I sat high up in a tree and watched my own funeral. It was just like daddy's except I knew that my body was in the coffin. _

_ After the funeral I felt a sensation like I was slipping away. I found myself in the beautiful meadow with Edward's home in the distance._

_ "Is this better?" Edward asked me._

_ I nodded as I ran towards the house and Edward's parents._

"_Through the wind and the rain she stands hard as a stone._

_In a world that she can't rise above._

_But her dreams give her wings and she flies to a place where she's loved._

_Concrete Angel."_

I woke up and looked around. Who needed that dream, I was so much better off in this reality.

For the first time in so long, I felt…

"Safe." I whispered the first word I had said in almost a year.

**The song for this chapter is "Concrete Angel" by 'Martina McBride'**

**Thanks for reading and please review. :D**


	4. Shine On

**I am so sorry for the slow updates but my schedule is packed right now.**

**I meant to update last weekend, but I got the stomach flu for the first time in 10 years! Can you believe it? 10 freaking years! Talk about a record breaker. Then this weekend was semi. Then I tried to upload this chapter and it said something about a processing error, so sorry!!! **

Shine On

BPOV

I woke up the next morning feeling well rested. I still wasn't quite ready to tell the Masens about my past, or speak aloud to them at all really, but I was on the right track.

I walked downstairs slowly, but I tripped on the last step when I saw the sight in front of me:

Edward's father, Edward Sr., was putting on his hat and grabbing his briefcase, getting ready to head out the door. When my daddy walked out the front door last time he never came back through it. Just as I found someone to trust again, he couldn't abandon me too.

"No!!!" I cried out. I dashed forward and wrapped my arms around Edward Sr.'s leg and held on tight sobbing into the fabric. I didn't realize until after that it was the first word the Masens had heard me utter.

"Little One, what's wrong?" Mr. Masen asked me as he loosened my arms from around his leg and picked me up. I immediately wrapped my arms around his neck instead. "I have to go to work, Little One." When I still refused to let go, he called out, "Edward."

Edward junior walked down the stairs. "I was just getting my things for school, father." He said, seeming to think he would get into trouble for being upstairs. He saw me then and smiled. "Need a little help?"

"I have to get to work, so would you please look after her?" I could hear the reluctance in Mr. Masen's voice.

Edward Jr. walked over to us and pulled me to him. I stayed limp in his arms as I watched Mr. Masen walk out the door.

"Come on Sarah, let's go…play piano." He had to think about what to do with me.

He played a lot of songs for me, and then finally looked in my direction. "I have to leave for school in a few minutes, will you be okay here? Mary is in the kitchen and my mother went out to arrange for the dressmaker to come later for you. She should be home soon." I nodded and watched as he left the room.

I sat still on the couch for five more minutes, just to make sure Edward didn't come back, and then I moved onto the piano bench.

Daddy had taught me the keys and notes when I was younger, and the rest I had learned from watching daddy play the song he wrote for me when the war broke out. He had left soon after. Canada had entered the war very early on.

We weren't actually part of Canada officially, but I like to think we are. Daddy had been killed along with 90% of the rest of the Newfoundland regiment. At least, I think that was right, I had only heard snatches of the conversation between mama and the soldiers.

I really had to find out where I was. I remember slipping onto a boat. That was a mistake, waves and me were not meant to coexist. After the boat, I had slipped from train to train, until the conductor announced that this was the last stop. I had seen a sign that said 'Now Entering Illinois' a while back. Maybe I was in Ontario…

I hit the middle C note. The piano was perfectly tuned. I jumped off the piano bench and opened it. There was a notebook full of blank music sheets and a pencil on the top of the pile of books and pulled them out.

I sat back down on the bench and placed the book and pencil on the stand. I started by hitting the notes that began the song, then, once I was sure that it was correct, I wrote it down on the page. The whole song took up 10 pages. Daddy had sung the song in G Major, so I left it there, I also left the time signature at 4/4. After I was sure I had the notes all done, I started to add in the words:

_Are they calling for, our last dance?_

_I see it, in your eyes. _

_In your eyes._

_Same old moves, for, a new romance._

_I could use, the same old lies, but I'll sing,_

_Shine on, just shine on!_

_Close your eyes and they'll all be gone._

_They can scream and shout that they've been sold out,_

_But it paid for the cloud that we're dancing on._

_So shine on. Just shine on!_

_With your smile just as bright as the sun._

_'Cause they're all just slaves to the gods they've made_

_But you and I just shone._

_Just shone._

_And when silence greets my last goodbye,_

_The words I need are in your eyes, and I'll sing._

_Shine On, just shine on!_

_Close your eyes and they'll all be gone._

_They can scream and shout that they've been sold out,_

_But it paid for the cloud that we're dancing on._

_So shine on. Just shine on!_

_With your smile just as bright as the sun._

_'Cause they're all just slaves to the gods they made,_

_But you and I, just shone._

_Just shone._

_So shine on, just shine on!_

_Close your eyes and they'll all be gone._

_They can scream and shout that they've been sold out,_

_But it paid for the cloud that we're dancing on._

_So shine on. Just shine on!_

_With your smile just as bright as the sun._

_'Cause they're all just slaves to the gods they've made_

_But you and I just shone._

_Just shone._

I stared at the completed song in front of me and gently started to play the introduction notes. I sang the first few lines softly, but the song wasn't meant to be that quiet. It was my song, so I started to sing with more volume. Mama may have hated my speaking voice, but she used to make me sing for her a lot because, just like daddy, she thought my singing voice was quite pretty.

At the top of the piece, I wrote the title, Shine On, and slightly lower and off to the right, I wrote:

_Composed by Charles Swan_

_For Isabella Swan_

I sang through the song one more time, then I gathered up the pages and left the room. I didn't know Mrs. Masen had been in the hallway listening to my performance.

ELPOV (Elizabeth POV)

I walked through the front hallway on my back from the tailors. Mrs. Sandler, our trusted tailor, was stopping by later in the day to take Bella's measurements.

Holly, Mary's fourteen-year-old help, passed me with a smile on her face. "That little girl Master Edward picked up yesterday is really talented at singing and the piano, Missus Masen."

"What? She won't even speak, how is she singing?"

Holly shrugged, her dark blue eyes dancing. "I don't know, Missus." She shook her head and headed back to the kitchen. I was left staring at the dark brown bun on the back of her head.

I sighed and walked towards the room at the back of the house that was empty except for a couch, and Edward's favourite (we had two) piano.

Holly was right. I could hear Sarah singing inside the room. It was a song that I didn't recognize, but it sounded beautiful. I would have to ask Edward about it. It had to be in one of his books.

I was so caught up in my thoughts that I didn't hear when the piano stopped playing, but suddenly the door opened a bit more and Sarah made her way into the hallway. She looked at me with a look of pain in her chocolate brown eyes.

**I am so sorry once again for the slow updates.**

**The song for this chapter is 'Shine On' by 'James Blunt'**

**Just a quick preview for next chapter:**

"Bella? That's your name isn't it." I looked from the little girl with tears streaming down her pale face to the music sheets scattered on the floor.

"Please don't tell them." The child whispered.

"I don't know why you don't want them to know, but I will respect your wishes. To them you will still be Sarah Iris Masen."

I gasped in shock as the child flung her arms around my stomach. Imagine that, me, Mary Jones, the keeper of a secret that had the potential to destroy the girl's future with the Masens. My eyes drifted back to the missing sign with the child's face on it in my hands, and back again to the music sheets on the floor. This girl had a hidden past that I was sure was much darker than any childs' deserved to be.

**Please review **

**-Nobody**


	5. Iris

**So sorry for not updating for ages but I have been to New York, Poland, Israel, Italy, and Greece since I last updated. I have my grade 11 English credit, and I am now a National Lifeguard. So, I have been extremely busy. Sorry.**

**-Nobody**

**This chapter is dedicated to Hollster09 (who the character Holly is based on), and my friend Alisha who has been begging me to update for months.**

Iris

ELPOV (Elizabeth POV)

I followed Sarah to the dining room and sat down across from her. "You have a beautiful voice." I told her. She just stared back at me accusingly. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, I just happened to be walking by and I stopped to listen." Her expression did not change.

Thankfully, Mary chose that minute to walk into the room holding bunches of flowers in each hand. "Lunch will be served in a moment Missus Masen, but for now I figured everybody's rooms had a bunch of flowers in them except the child's so we should choose a bunch for her." She held out a bouquet of blue and white irises, and a bouquet of yellow and red roses. Sarah instantly reached for the irises.

"Do you like the irises, Sarah?" I asked her. She nodded. The child never smiled.

"Sarah Iris. That has a nice ring to it." Holly said as she walked into the dining room with the lunch dishes.

"Indeed it does." I agreed. "Sarah Iris Masen."

The rest of the lunch passed in silence. Only after the dishes had been cleared did I remember the tailor that I had coming to measure Sarah for clothes in less than an hour. I planned on getting her several dresses. I really did want her to stay for a while. I hoped my Edwards wouldn't mind

MPOV

The tailor came and went, measuring Sarah a few little gowns. I sat down in my room in the servant's chambers and wrote a letter to my sister in Newfoundland. I kept her posted regularly on all of the Masens' antics. I sent her a description of little Sarah as well.

_Dear Ruthie,_

_ I am well, we have been quite busy on this end. I have to work twice as hard because Missus Masen can't help as much because the family is constantly bickering about Edward's future career. He is 16 now, almost a man. Missus Masen thinks Edward should be focusing on school more and sports less, but Edward is determined that his future will be in medicine or baseball and figures that as long as he has a good science mark he will be fine. Mister and Missus Masen have very different ideas for Edward. Missus wants him to be a musician as he is very passionate about the piano, but Mister Masen wants him to a lawyer just like all of the men in his family for generations. Edward reasons that his father doesn't want him to be a musician because it is unstable and low paying, but medicine is steady and both sports and medicine are well paying. It seems like an endless battle._

_ We have a little visitor over right now who is around five or six. At least she looks like she is no more than that. She doesn't speak at all, but we discovered today that she sings quite well. We don't know what her real name is, but for now we call her Sarah. She has big chocolate brown eyes, long dark brown hair, and she is quite tiny. Her face is heart shaped and quite pale. She is a bit bruised and scarred, and she never smiles. I kind of like her._

_ Well, dear, I should be saying goodbye for now as I have to start making dinner._

_ Love Mary._

It wasn't long until I received a reply from Ruthie. In the passing two days nothing really changed. Sarah wouldn't speak or smile, and she didn't sing again either. She did, however, attach herself like a limpet to Mr. Masen. It was really quite cute. Edward had always been closer to his mother, but it was clear that this girl was very much a daddy's girl. Missus Masen found it quite endearing but I think she was just a bit jealous. Edward was quite content to rank below his father in the girl's eyes as he knew that his father's opinion was the most detrimental to the girl permanent residence in their home. Mr. Masen was absolutely sold on the child. He wanted the child to stay as much as Missus Masen now. He just really liked knowing that this little girl felt the most comfortable with him.

My sister's reply held quite a shock for me in it:

_Dearest Mary,_

_It sounds like the Masens are well. You never mentioned Holly in your last letter, doesn't she still work with you?_

_ Henry and I are doing very well at the moment, and I have the most exciting news. We are expecting twins. We have already decided that if the babies are boys they will be named Aaron and Daniel, if they are girls we will name them Jennet and Allison, and if we have one of each they will be named Claire and Samuel._

_ The girl you described sounded very…well, I definitely recognized the description. It took me a while to remember from where, but then I saw the missing child in the paper. She fit your description exactly. I enclosed the paper clipping so you could see for yourself. It says that her mother is quite worried about little Isabella, that's the girl's name. The husband was recently killed in the war and Isabella is all she has left. The contact information is all under the picture._

_ Henry has a new colleague at work…_

That was where I stopped reading. Quickly putting aside the letter and snatching up the clipping, I gasped as I stared at the girl in the picture. There was Sarah. I almost didn't recognize her face as it was all happy smiles, but there was no mistaking that the girl in the picture was the same girl who was staying in our house.

I walked slowly into the entrance to the living room and looked around. Edward sat at the desk in the corner studying his Latin book intently. Missus Masen was sitting on the couch embroidering a design into one of the nightgowns she had made Sarah. It was quite pretty. There were blue and white irises to match the ones I had put in her bedroom, along with little black music notes to hopefully encourage Sarah into singing again. Mister Masen was sitting in his armchair with Sarah, or Isabella or whatever her name was, sitting on his lap. He was reading to her from a book of fairytales. I smiled as I watched the two of them. It was a side of Mister Masen that I had never seen before.

Now that I was seeing Sarah up close, it seemed that her resemblance to the little girl in the clipping was fading. The girl in the clipping had had a baby round face, but Sarah had thin cheeks despite the food we were now feeding her. The girl in the clipping had been all smiles with sparkling eyes, Sarah, on the other hand, never smiled, and her eyes, though always alert, never sparkled.

ESPOV

That night, when I was working in my study, I heard a soft tapping at the door. "Come in." I called. Little Sarah walked in sniffling. "What's wrong, little one?" I asked her. She looked down at herself, her shoulders shaking. I motioned her over and pulled her up onto my lap. She wrapped fingers around the bottom of my shirt and closed her eyes. I brushed her brown hair away from her face. My little one may be tiny and skinny and unhappy, but she was still the most adorable child in the world. I went back to the file on my desk eventually, but I couldn't seem to focus on it. My eyes kept straying to the little girl in my lap.

It was about a half an hour later that I was finally able to get back to the case file on my desk. I heard Sarah gasp and give a little cry. She was just blinking awake from a bad dream with tears streaking down her face. My lap was beginning to feel a bit damp and as I looked down, I noticed there was a wet mark gradually growing bigger on her nightdress. "Oh dear." I muttered as I picked her up and carried her to her bathroom. I set her down and rushed back to my room to change. It was about time I put my pajamas on anyway.

Once changed, I hurried back to her room. I stopped by her closet and grabbed another nightgown, as well as a towel, before stepping into the bathroom. She just stood in the middle of the floor in her wet nightdress sobbing. I gently stripped her of the wet nightgown and set her in the bathtub. I cleaned her off and put her into the clean gown before taking her up in my arms and gently carrying her to her bed.

"Shh, calm down sweetheart." I murmured to her as I held her in lap. "Mistakes happen to everyone." She continued to cry unhappily. I knew that with babies you were supposed to leave them crying and they would go back to sleep. But Sarah wasn't a baby. Babies cried at night because they were hungry, but Sarah was probably embarrassed and ashamed. I didn't know what I could say to comfort her, or if I could say anything at all, so I simply held her close to me. Her sobs eventually turned into gasps and then to nothing as she fell into a deep, and hopefully happy, sleep.

I placed her gently under the covers and exited her room softly. I tiptoed past my son's room and into my own.

Elizabeth was sitting up in bed. "What was Sarah crying about?" She whispered.

"She had a little accident, but she's okay."

I slipped into bed beside my Elizabeth and wrapped my arms around her. She pressed her lips softly against my own and wrapped her arms around my neck. I kissed her gently, running my hands up and down her back. It had been so long since I had had time alone with my wife.

"You've been working so much lately, I feel like I never get a chance to be alone with you anymore." Elizabeth whispered. She looked up at me with tears in her eyes.

"I have the day off tomorrow." I told her. "How about if we get Edward to take Sarah to the park and we spend the whole day together just the two of us. We can sleep in and then take a picnic lunch into woods and find a clearing just like we did when we were courting."

"That sounds perfect." My wife smiled up at me. I continued to press kisses against her lips as my hands found her hips. She gave herself to me happily and willingly.

It was about an hour later that we finally began to fall asleep. "I love you." I whispered to her as I pressed myself against her sleepy form.

"I love you too." She whispered closing her eyes and wrapping her arms around me. I held her close as my eyes slipped closed.

MPOV

I packed mister and missus Masen a lunch for their day together. I was happy they were going to be spending some time together. Both looked blissfully happy as they went out the door arm in arm.

Edward was taking Sarah to the park after lunch, so I went to the kitchen to get it ready. I really wanted to get that picture of Isabella just to compare again. I had left the picture in the closet by the music room so I went to get it.

On the way past the music room I accidentally bumped into Sarah. She fell to the floor, dropping the music sheets she had been holding. I looked at the sheets on the floor and noticed the name she had written at the top. I was so surprised I had to hear it out of the child's mouth, so I asked, "Bella? That's your name isn't it?" I looked from the little girl with tears streaming down her pale face to the music sheets scattered on the floor. "Please don't tell them." The child whispered. "I don't know why you don't want them to know, but I will respect your wishes. To them you will still be Sarah Iris Masen." I just hoped I could keep that promise. I gasped in shock as the child flung her arms around my stomach. Imagine that, me, Mary Jones, the keeper of a secret that had the potential to destroy the girl's future with the Masens. My eyes drifted back to the missing sign with the child's face on it in my hands, and back again to the music sheets on the floor. This girl had a hidden past that I was sure was much darker than any childs' deserved to be.

EPOV

I stepped out the door after lunch with Sarah. She followed me mutely. I'll admit I was looking forward to this. Sarah has never seemed to be as comfortable around me as she is around my father, and I was hoping today would help us bond a little bit.

As we got farther away from home, Sarah gradually moved closer and closer until she was walking beside me. We finally got to the park and then just stood there. I realized that I had no idea what to do with the child.

"Hey Edward." I turned around to find my friends David and Lewis.

"We were going to see if we could set up a game of soccer. Interested?" Lewis asked.

I looked at Sarah, who had hidden herself behind me. I didn't know what sort of things she like, but maybe watching sports would make her feel more comfortable. I was being selfish, I knew, but I really wanted to play and it's not like Sarah was exactly fun company. I loved the child, don't get me wrong, but what could I really do with her? I'd take her on the swings afterward to make up for it. "Sure." I agreed.

"Who's this?" David asked, finally seeming to notice Sarah behind me.

"My parents want to adopt her." I told him. "We call her Sarah."

"Hello Sarah." Lewis and David said in synch.

She waved from behind me briefly.

"Who else is coming to play?" I asked Lewis.

"Harvey, Thomas, Billy, Michael, Gregory, Jack, Sam, Stephen, and Richard."

We moved over to a bench to wait for the other boys to arrive. Sarah clung to my suspenders the whole time. David and Lewis sat down casually and tossed the ball between them. I sat down beside Lewis. Sarah just stood there for a moment, then she raised her arms to me. I was pretty proud as I picked her up and sat her on my lap.

The other boys got to the park within the next 10 minutes.

"Alright," David said, "Let the game begin."

**The song for this chapter is Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls.**

**Listen to the chorus: And I don't want the world to see me**

** because I don't think that they'd understand**

** When everything's made to be broken**

** I just want you to know who I am.**


	6. Stop Crying Your Heart Out

**I bet you didn't expect to hear from me again so soon.**

**-Nobody**

**This chapter is dedicated to 'cute puppies' and all of my reviewers from last chapter Kitty Bella Lemondove, Bella and Jacob fan 423, and Lizzosaur**

Stop Crying Your Heart Out

EPOV

I gently sat Sarah on the bench and told her, "I'm going to play soccer, will you be all right sitting here?" She nodded. Sarah may give no verbal response, but she definitely understands everything we say.

I dashed across the field and joined my team. I was with Lewis, Thomas, Billy, Michael, and Jack. Billy had set the boundaries for the net and he was playing goalie. Thomas and Michael were playing defense, Lewis and Jack were playing forward, and I was playing midfield because I was the fastest runner.

We had all been playing for about an hour and were completely out of breath when we decided to take a 10-minute break. I dashed over Sarah feeling bad that I had just left her for so long. "Do you want to go on the swing for a little while?" I asked her.

She pointed to the field looking confused.

"We're taking a 10 minute break. Are you enjoying watching?"

She nodded and followed me as I headed for the swing. When she saw the swing she smiled. Sarah actually smiled. I was delighted. I picked her up and placed her on the swing.

"Hold on tight." I told her as I walked behind her. I gave her a gentle push. She giggled. I was shocked and thrilled. "Are you having fun, Sarah?" She nodded and giggled again, but she didn't speak. I pushed her on the swing until my team called me back to the field. Sarah had laughed the entire time.

"Do you want to keep swinging or do you want to watch the soccer game?" I was perfectly willing to stop playing if it meant I could listen to Sarah's adorable giggles.

She pointed to the field and smiled up at me. I grinned down at her and lifted her off the swing. We raced back to the bench and I sat her down on it before rejoining my team.

I noticed the sky was beginning to cloud over but it didn't look too bad yet. We had been playing for about 45 minutes when we heard a rumble of thunder and it started to rain.

"We'd better stop." Harvey shouted.

We all agreed. It was really starting to pour as I turned to the bench that I had left Sarah on. But the bench was empty. Sarah was gone.

BPOV

I was so happy. Edward had pushed me on the swings for a little while. Papa used to push me on the swings before he went away to war. I always loved the swings. Papa had set up a swing in our backyard at home. There had been a great day where mommy had set up the camera in the backyard, and we had taken a series of family pictures by the swing. My favourite was the one where I was standing on the wooden seat of the swing clinging to the ropes on either side with papa standing behind me with his arms wrapped around me and his head resting on my shoulder. Mommy had been laughing while she took the picture, which had made papa and me laugh. This was the picture that papa had had specially fitted and put in my locket.

I was thinking about papa and watching Edward's soccer game when I noticed a rabbit out of the corner of my eye.

Papa had read me Alice in Wonderland that time I had the flu when I was 5. "Rabbits are special, Bella." He had told when we were finished. "If you are ever lucky enough to find a rabbit hole, take care to be polite to the rabbits."

"I want to find a rabbit hole." I had told papa.

"They are tricky to find." My father had mused. "We used to have one in the backyard a few years ago."

"Did our rabbit have a pocket watch?"

"I don't know, sweetheart. He was a shy fellow. I never got near enough to ask him."

"One day I will find a rabbit with a pocket watch just like Alice." I had told him.

Today could be my chance to find the very rabbit I was looking for. I slipped off the bench and quietly made my way towards the gray bunny that was munching the grass, completely unaware of my presence. I wished the rabbit was white, but maybe the gray ones had golden pocket watches on chains too.

The rabbit pricked his ears and looked up as I came closer. I was almost within reach of him when he turned and hopped away. I followed him, running to keep up. I didn't notice when we reached the edge of the forest. I didn't notice the mud and wet leaves on the ground staining the white hem on my dress. I didn't notice the sky getting darker above.

"Rabbit, where are you going?" I called out. I could just barely make out the poof of a tail as the rabbit hopped farther and farther away. I stopped to take a breath. My heart was racing in my chest. I had called out to the rabbit, but I still couldn't work up the nerves to speak in front of the Masens. Mrs. Masen had heard me sing, and Edward had heard me laugh, but only daddy Masen had heard me speak. Even if it was only one word, and he hadn't listened. He had left anyways, just like papa. But daddy Masen had come back while papa never returned.

I had caught my breath by this point, so I tried to follow the rabbit again. I couldn't find him. The rabbit had disappeared. I decided it was time I head back as well. I turned around. The scenery looked just the same as it did in the other direction. I turned around again and still the scenery was just trees. I kept turning until I couldn't remember what direction I had come in.

I decided to just start walking. There was sudden boom of thunder that made me jump so high I almost lost my balance. The rain started to come down and I was soaked within minutes.

Walking across dry ground was not great for my balance, but walking across wet ground was even worse. I decided to take the safest option and just stay still.

It felt like hours later when I finally heard Edward's voice calling the name that Mrs. Masen had given me. I was freezing cold and soaked to the bone. In fact, I was too cold to remember not to use my horrible voice. Well, mommy said it was horrible. Papa had always liked my voice. "I'm here!" I called back.

Edward made his way to where I was sitting. "Sarah, why did you leave?"

"That's not my name." I told him. I was shaking and tears were making their way down my face.

Edward reached down ad scooped me into his arms. "What is your name, then.?"

I didn't answer. Instead, I hid my face in his shoulder and started to sob.

He started to move forward then. He was cradling me in his arms as he moved, rubbing my back in soothing circles.

It continued to pour heavily the entire walk. I felt the difference when we reached the house, though I couldn't see it. My face was still pressed into Edward's shoulder.

"Edward, what happened?" I heard Mrs. Masen gasp as soon as the door was open.

"I don't know, mother. I was playing soccer with my friends, then it started to rain. I looked around for her but she was gone."

"Little one?" I heard daddy Masen's voice right in front of me. Without looking up I reached out for him.

"Sh. It's okay. You'll be okay." I felt him lift me into his own arms as he whispered comforting words to me.

I was so happy he had forgiven me for last night. I was so embarrassed. I hadn't wet myself since I was three years old. It had been the nightmare that had done it. It was the same one I always had. Not even a made up scare, just another reenactment of the day we were told that papa was dead. This time it felt different, though. This time it had felt like I was actually letting him go. The difference was clear. Before I had always thought that the soldiers were mistaken. Papa would be back at the end of the war just like everyone else. But this time I knew. Even if papa did come back, I wouldn't be there. I couldn't ever go back to mommy. For my own safety, I had to let papa go. That knowledge was scarier than anything my imagination could have come up with.

"Don't cry, little one." I realized my tears had redoubled with the remembered nightmare from last night. Daddy Masen continued to soothe me on his way up the stairs. "Everything will be fine."

I could hear Edward and Mrs. Masen behind us on the stairs. Edward was explaining what had happened to his mother.

"I took her to the park like you wanted." He told her. "David and Lewis invited me to join in their game of soccer. They had gotten a large group of boys for it. I left Sarah sitting on the bench to watch."

"We asked you to spend time with her at the park." Daddy Masen interrupted. "Not leave her on a bench while you go off with your friends."

"I know. I'm sorry. I thought she might enjoy watching the game. Anyways, we played for about an hour before we decided to take a 10-minute break. I took Sarah to the swings during it. It was amazing. She was laughing. Actually laughing. It was adorable."

So my voice was adorable. This was new.

"I asked her if she wanted to keep swinging or watch the game. She pointed to the field so I assumed she wanted to watch the game. I put her back on the bench by the field to watch. We played for almost an hour, then it started to rain. I decided it must be time to take Sarah home. I looked at the bench, but she wasn't there. She wasn't anywhere in sight. Lewis said he thought he had a little girl running into the forest. It took me a long time to find her. She had gone pretty far and the rain had erased any footprints she had left. I was close to panicking at this point. I was calling and calling, and she finally called back. She actually spoke. She said 'I'm here'. I finally found her curled up against a tree. I asked her why she had left. I said 'Sarah why did you leave?', and she said 'That's not my name'. I was shocked that she had spoken. Truly shocked. So I asked her what her real name was and she just started to cry."

"So her name isn't Sarah." Mrs. Masen sounded shocked.

"You always knew that." Daddy Masen told her.

"I guess. I just got so used to calling her Sarah that I forgot I had given her that name."

I listened to their entire conversation from the safety of daddy Masen's arms. I wanted to tell them what my name was. I really did, I just couldn't. I wasn't ready yet.

We had reached my room at this point. "I think we should give you a hot bath to help warm you up. How about that little one?" Daddy Masen asked me.

I nodded. The house was warm but I was still shivering with the after affects from outside.

"Edward, you can go and get changed into dry clothes then ask Mary to bring some dinner upstairs for you and the little one." His eyes dared Edward to argue. Edward obediently left to do what he was told.

Daddy Masen passed me to Mrs. Masen so he could run my bath. Mrs. Masen set me on the ground to take off my dress. I was shivering so much I nearly fell over.

"Oh poor thing." Mrs. Masen murmured, pulling me against her chest. I hesitantly wrapped my arms around her neck.

She lifted me off the ground and carried me over to daddy Masen, still clad in my wet gown. Daddy Masen was waiting by the full tub.

"Edward, what do you think, she can barely stand up." Mrs. Masen was clearly quite worried.

"Little one, can you lift your arms above your head?" I obediently lifted them, and together, daddy and Mrs. Masen stripped me of my dress and undergarments.

Mrs. Masen gently lowered me into the tub while daddy Masen went to fetch a towel and nightdress for me.

I was warm, dry, and dressed by the time Edward got back with two bowls of soup. He sat at the foot of my bed to eat while daddy Masen fed my soup to me. I could have done it myself, but it felt nice to be looked after.

Mrs. Masen fussed around both Edward and I the entire time we were eating.

When we were finished eating Mrs. Masen leaned in and kissed me on the forehead while she took my bowl. "Goodnight Sar-...Goodnight." She didn't seem to know what to call me now, so she didn't call me anything.

Daddy Masen tucked me under the covers and then kissed my forehead, and followed his wife to the door. They waited by the door for Edward.

Edward moved closer to me and kissed my forehead just like his parents. "Goodnight." he said.

"Bella." I whispered clutching his hand.

"What?" he asked.

I raised my voice a little so daddy and Mrs. Masen could hear as well. "My name is Bella."

**The song for this chapter is Stop Crying Your Heart Out by Oasis.**

**I don't know what to make the scene that comes next sound like, so I am designing a contest to get help.**

**I just need you to send me what you think the next chapter should sound like. Please send them to my inbox. I will announce the winner with the next chapter. I will give an honourable mention to anyone who I take ideas from.**


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